The Other Uzumaki
by Silvrite
Summary: This story follows the life of Kitana Uzumaki, the twin sister of Naruto. From the battles she has to the people she meets and how she affects the people around her. She is a powerful shinobi with a dangerous past.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter ****01**

**Author's Notes**

Hey guys this is an amended version of the story I have been posting on Quizilla for the last couple of years. I'd like getting reviews, good or bad, but no flaming please.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters involved with the anime or manga. I do however own Kitana and any characters I create for the purpose of my story.

**3****rd**** Person POV**

This story starts in a land of powerful shinobi, a land where people strive to become stronger and protect what they hold dearest. A land engulfed by wilderness, and protected by the trees. I supposed you are wondering where this place is? In the Land of Fire nestled away deep inside a forest lays the Hidden Village of Kohohagakure, the village hidden in the leaves. It is in the early hours of a beautiful morning that the main character of this story first appears, but it is also this day that will see the start of her adventures.

The soft chirping of the birds heralded the arrival of the dawn. The sun stretched its fingers slowly over the land bringing light where there once was none. Gradually the massive wooden gate with the leaf symbol carved into it becomes clear. The guards patrolling on this gate smile softly as the village they love is slowly brought to life by the light. As we follow the light winding through streets waking the sleepy villagers in its wake, we finally arrive at our destination. The home of the Fourth Hokage, who some say is the most powerful shinobi in existence. This normally quite household is alive with activity today, just one of the signs that today was going to be different.

**Yodaime's POV**

I knelt beside my wife as her body was wracked with pain once again. Her nails dug into my skin as she held in the scream I knew she wanted to release. Slowly she started to relax again. I grabbed a cloth out of a bowl of cold water and wrung it out before gently wiping away the sweat that covered the beautiful face of the only woman I have ever loved. "Thank you." She said softly as she smiled at me. "You're doing great honey. It won't be long now." I said as I gave her hand a gentle squeeze before looking over at Nina who gave a short nod showing that I was right. "You won't leave right." Selena asked nervously. "Never." I replied calmly as I looked into her eyes reassuringly. She seemed to relax when she heard that.

But it wasn't long after that, that I would have to go back on my word. A loud urgent banging was heard at the front door making me look up. "I'll be right back." I said quickly before getting up to answer the door. Before I even got to the door I knew who it was. One of the youngest Jounin in the village, at 14 years old, his name was Hatake Kakashi. He had earned a reputation in the village as a calm and confident shinobi, a prodigy in fact. I opened the door and immediately became serious. I could see the fear flickering in his eyes somehow breaking through his emotionless mask; it was enough to send shivers down my spine. "Sir, it's the Kyuubi." The young Kakashi reported in a militaristic fashion. I looked up past Kakashi to the forest surrounding my village, a large cloud of dust could be seen off in the distance. I had been so worried about Selena that I hadn't even felt the large amount of chakra the demon fox was letting out.

"Wait here" I stated quickly before walking back into my bedroom. A sudden dread touched my heart when I saw the worried expression marring loving wife's face. She knew that I was leaving, like she always seemed to know. Sighing I knelt down beside her and took her hand in mine again. "What is the emergency?" She asked calmly. "The Kyuubi." I stated firmly. I saw fear flash past her eyes before she hid it. "You can't fight him, he's too powerful." She said as she gripped my hand firmly. "Selena, you know I can't run from this. I have to protect the village, the people and more importantly you and our child." I replied a sad smile touching my lips. She knew when she married me that a time like this could come I just hoped she would understand. "I know, and if you didn't go you wouldn't be the man I fell in love with. Just come back." She ended softly a lone tear streaking down her cheek. I didn't say anything as I kissed her softly and stood up. "Nina take care of her and let me know the moment something happens." I said before walking out the door and meeting up with Kakashi.

"Come on kiddo lets go show this fox who's in charge around here." I said with a smile before adding chakra to my feet and dashing off, Kakashi following close behind. As we went along more and more shinobi joined us. Each showing different emotions fear, anger and excitement were the dominant ones. When we got to the gate I got my first look at the giant red demon fox that was the Kyuubi. His eyes gleamed with excitement and bloodlust while his body pushed out wave upon wave of chakra, he seemed to have an almost endless supply of it. This would be a battle no one would forget.

**Selena's POV**

"Push!" Nina shouted out as I pushed with all my might, pain pulsed through my body making me dig my nails into the bed covers. Suddenly I felt a release and then the soft cry of a baby… my baby. "It's a boy." Nina said happily as she wrapped him up in a blanket. I somehow managed to push myself up in the bed as Nina brought my son to me. When he was safely in my arms I looked at his perfect face. A small amount of blond hair on his head showed that he would probably take after his father. With a wave of my hand I washed away the excess birthing fluid leaving him clean. A sudden flash of light made me look up quickly. "Sorry it was too good a shot to pass up." Nina said as she grabbed the Polaroid and shook it gently in the air. After a moment she gave it to me. The picture really was a nice one of me smiling down gently at my son.

"So what are you going to call him?" Nina asked as she put the camera down and got ready to leave as I knew she would. "Naruto… yes Naruto is a good strong name. One day I can see people looking up too him just like they do his father." I said as I looked down at the beautiful baby boy in my arms. "I'll let Yodaime know, you stay in bed and I will come check on you when this is all over with." Nina said as she touched Naruto's head gently and gave me a quick smile before disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

Carefully I lifted Naruto up onto a disk of water and carried him over to the crib Yodaime had, had made for him. By now you must be wondering how I am able to control water they way I am. In truth all woman born in the Hirugawa bloodline can do it but that's a story for another time. I allowed myself to sink back in bed again; I was tired and needed to rest. A sudden sharp pain in my lower back sent all thoughts of rest from my mind. _'What was that?' _I wondered as I waited a moment, it happened again making me cringe. I closed my eyes and started to go through all I knew about child births, there was quite a bit of information to go through since I was a medical nin. After another wave of pain I had come to the only conclusion I could, I was having twins.

Again I felt the pain but this time I pushed as hard as I could, again and again. Until finally the soft cries of another baby reached my ears. Leaning forward I gathered the child in my arms cleaning it as I did it. I felt a sudden warmth in my chest when I realised the Hirugawa bloodline would continue. In my arms was my baby girl, just like her brother she had a tuft of blond hair on her head and even without opening her eyes I knew they were blue. Just like all daughters of the Hirugawa. "Now what am I going to call you little one." I said softly as my eyes rested on my child. An idea popped into my head that was immediately appealing. "I'll name you after your grandmother, Kitana. I know you will uphold the honour of this name." I continued.

But the glow I was feeling at having both my children born healthy, and having held both of the in my arms quickly vanished when the chakra signal I had been following suddenly disappeared. "No." I muttered as my head turned to face the window sharply. I felt my body go numb as an overwhelming chakra presence entered the room. I looked over at Naruto just in time to see the last of the fiery red chakra being absorbed into his body. Despite the pain in both my body and heart I got up and walked over to the crib. I held my daughter close to me when I saw what had happened to her brother. The final inscriptions of a seal were appearing on Naruto's stomach. It was a chakra seal but it was slightly different, it seemed to have been adjusted to allow the Kyuubi's chakra to mix with Naruto's.

In that moment I knew what had happened. Yodaime had sealed the Kyuubi within our son, he had condemned him to be a container for the demon for the rest of his life. I looked at the once flawless face of my son and flinched back. On his face were three whisker like markings on either cheek. He was marked and everyone would now know. How could Yodaime do this? Looking at my daughter once more I knew what I had to do. After performing a couple of jutsu's on myself to block the pain I was feeling I quickly packed a bag. Taking a final look around the room I spotted the photo Nina had taken of Naruto and I before he was tainted. I picked it up gently and placed it in one of my pockets. Satisfied that there was nothing else I needed I picked Kitana up and without even looking back at Naruto I teleported out.

For the first few days after I ran from the village I was left alone but eventually just as I knew would happen, the village sent an ANBU tracking team after me. But I was prepared for them; using my power over water I made sure to wash away all traces of us. Of course Konoha ANBU were some of the best so all I really did was slow them down. It wasn't until I reached the Land of Mist that I finally began to relax because from here on out no one could follow me no matter how good they were. I was finally close enough to Leana's cabin for Aeris' power to protect me from them. I had made it to the one place a Hirugawa felt safest, where Kitana and I would never be found and where I could finally mourn for what I had lost, my son, my life and the love of my life.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 02**

**Selena's POV**

The soft crying of child caught my attention as I stood in the kitchen preparing dinner. I sighed before wiping my hands off and heading toward the bedroom. Standing by the crib I smiled at the sight of my beautiful baby boy. His soft blond hair reminding me so much of his father. "What's got you so bothered Naruto?" I asked gently as I reached into the crib to pick him up. Unexpectedly his crying stoped as he opened his eyes. I froze in terror at the sight of the blood red eyes staring back at me. A sudden blaze of red chakra burst forth from Naruto burning me, I couldn't hold back the scream that broke free from my mouth. A dark evil laugh sounded all around me.

I forced my eyes open but a moment later I wished I hadn't because inches from my face the smiling figure of the Kyuubi stood. His blood lust soaked the air making it hard to breath. He blinked once before moving his head back slightly and looking me over. "Mother..." He whispered softly making my skin crawl. "I am not your mother!" I shouted back with what little courage I had. He smiled darkly and before I knew it he snapped one of his tails forward grabbing me around my throat. "Deny it all you will, but that won't change the fact that you gave birth to a demon." He said this with great pleasure loving the look of terror on my face.

His tail suddenly tightened around my throat constricting it so much that I couldn't breathe. I struggled pulling; twisting doing anything I could think of to escape but the edge of my vision was already going black. My hands dropped to my sides when I no longer had any energy to keep them up. I could feel myself fading, my life drifting away. But there was something in the back of my mind bothering me. A voice...it was so soft... what was it saying. "Mommy...Mommy...Mommy!"

My eyes snapped open as I gasped for breath. I sat up quickly looking around the room, sure that the Kyuubi was there. Instead I found my small bedroom devoid of the Kyuubi, in his place I found my little girl, Kitana. "Mommy are you alright, you were screaming." She asked concern lacing her voice. I was still breathing heavily but quickly got that under control. "I'm ok honey, it was just a bad dream." I replied trying to convince myself more than her.

I was no stranger to that dream. It came often and in varying degrees of severity. My son was a monster now and I knew it but I still couldn't help wishing that I still had him with me. After all he is a precious piece of Yodaime. I made sure to keep all my worries hidden as I looked over at Kitana. "I'm alright now dear; you can start getting ready for training." I said as I climbed out of bed.

She smiled widely while dashing out of my room. Kitana was three years old now; if we had still been living in Konoha I wouldn't have even considered training her this young. But we weren't still there, we were in the Land of water. Hidden deep within a forest near Kirigakure. This was a place protected by the great goddess Aeris. No one would be able to find this place unless they were a Hirugawa or being led by one.

I began to get dressed as I thought over what I would practice with Kitana today. She was showing amazing progress in taijutsu which was essential for the use of our Kekkei-Genkai (Bloodline Limit). In fact her progress was so dramatic that some would call her a prodigy, but only time would tell if that were true. I hated that I had to get her involved in the shinobi world so young but I would need help with the missions I took and soon. For some reason I was getting weaker. At first it wasn't noticeable but as time has progressed I have felt the drain on my chakra and strength more acutely.

And the missions are needed so that we can afford clothing and food other than what we find in the forest or lake beside the cabin. I work as a freelance shinobi for Kirigakure, taking whatever missions they have available. They generally keep the majority of the money given after a successful mission but I get enough that it doesn't bother me greatly. We need the money to survive and Kitana needs to learn to survive without me around. Her training takes care of both of these problems.

I brushed out my short brown hair, smoothing out all the knots accumulated after another rough night's sleep. Then making sure the short leaf green dress I was wearing was straight, I slipped on a pair of black tights that reached my knees. I finished off my outfit with a pair of blue sandals favored by shinobi. Now all I had to do was help Kitana finish up. I walked out of my room straight into the living room. The cabin was small with only two small bedrooms, a bathroom, kitchen and living room. All of the rooms branched off of the living room. I walked into the room beside mine and smiled.

Kitana had yet to start getting dressed; instead she was focused on making sure that the kunai set I had given her the previous week was still in perfect condition. I have never seen a child this obsessed with being a shinobi. From the moment she knew what a shinobi was she wanted to become one, and since I had started training her three months ago she barely stopped to eat and sleep. "Come on leave those alone for a minute and let's get you dressed." I said as I clapped my hands together grabbing her attention.

She looked up at me with her clear blue eyes that shimmered like water before smiling and nodding vigorously. "Mommy what are we doing today?" She asked enthusiastically as she stripped down while I got her some clothing out of her cupboard. "The usual, maybe we will spend a bit more time on your kunai throwing though." I replied off handedly as I helped her get dressed. She wore a blue t-shirt that matched her eyes and a pair of baggy black shorts. I found it almost impossible to get her to wear anything that looked girly. So instead she wore male clothing, and with her blond hair cut short she looked like a little boy. Not that, that bothered either of us since it would probably be better in missions if she looked like this for now.

"Alright let's go." I said as I stood up leaving Kitana to grab her kunai bag and attach it to her leg. It looked huge against her small legs but she refused to wear it attached to her waist because that wasn't the way normal shinobi wore it. We left her room and headed outside. The sun had yet to rise, not that that was surprising, it was rare that either of us would sleep in. The gentle lapping of the water in the lake relaxed me more than anything else could have. Hirugawa's are a part of water and water is a part of us. It is something that a lot of people just don't understand. I thought for a moment and wondered if Kitana understood.

"Time to warm up." I told Kitana as I sat down making myself comfy against a tree trunk. She nodded once going right into the warm up routine I had shown her months ago. "Kitana, have I told you the story behind our Kekkei-Genkai?" I asked her as she went through the motions. She thought for a moment before replying. "No but you promised that you would tell me ages ago." She whined slight. That was true I had said that, Kitana seemed to remember these things far better than I did. The story was one passed down from mother to daughter through every generation of Hirugawa. It was a way of reminding us who we owed our strength too and why we should never turn our backs on anyone in need. "Well I think it's about time I told you then." I decided as I sat up a little straight.

**The Story**

**Leanas' POV**

I awoke once again to the sun shining in my eyes as the wind blew my curtains away from the window. _'I really should fix that window'_ I thought to myself. I got out of bed slowly and made my way out to the lake; I washed up a bit and then started my hunt for food. I had brought a basket with me so I could get some berries to make a nice pie. Just thinking about it made my mouth water. I made my way quite deep into the woods knowing exactly where the best place to pick the big fat juicy blueberries I loved so much was. As I went along the animal trail I always followed I heard a whimpering coming from somewhere off to the side. '_What was that'_ I wondered. Slowly I snuck up to where the sound was coming from. As I got closer the sound became louder and I realised it sounded like an animal in pain. I pushed the bushes in front of me aside so I could see into the clearing ahead. What I saw there pulled at my heart strings.

A wolf cub, barely old enough to have left the den was lying on the floor its body torn up and bleeding. Blood lay spilled across the clearing as if a fight had occurred there. I got up quickly and ran to its side. As I neared it, it lifted its head slightly and growled at me. I ignored his obvious distrust of me as I knelt by his side to assess the damage. I ripped the bottom of my dress into strips and began to try and wrap up the wounds that laced his abdomen. The blood was soaking through the make shift bandages too quickly. Out here I wouldn't be able to do much; I need to get back to my cabin. I was worried about aggravating his wounds further but there was really no other choice right now. Being as careful as possible, I gathered him up into my arms then made a beeline from home. I went as quickly as I could while trying not to injure him too badly.

When I got home I placed him on the dining room table and grabbed a bucket then dashed outside to fill it with water from the lake. I made my way back inside and began to heat the water over the fire I already had going in the fireplace. While it was warming up I found some proper bandages and began trying to see where the most damage was on his tiny body. Every now and then he would let out a weak growl, showing that he didn't want me near him, but they became fewer and fewer as he got weaker. Once the water was warm enough I brought it over and began to clean the slashes along his side. They were deep and I knew it would be a miracle if he survived, but I was not about to give up; as long as he was breathing there was hope.

I grabbed some of the medicinal herbs I had been collecting to sell next week at the market and pressed them against his wounds. Carefully I wrapped the bandages around him, making sure to keep them as firm as possible. After I was done I picked him up carefully and lay him on a bed of blankets I had made near the fire, for now that was all I could do. I sat by him the rest of the day as he lay there in pain; I softly stroked the top of his head as he whimpered again. I realised that he needed to drink something, if he dehydrated all of my work would be for nothing.

I got some clean water I had set aside earlier and carefully lifted his head up. I slowly poured a tiny bit of water into his mouth and coaxed him into drinking it by rubbing his throat gently. After getting him to drink a reasonable amount of water I decided I had better get him something to eat. I went to the kitchen and found I only had a bit of dried meat, some flour and other random baking ingredients. I hadn't gone shopping in a while and was running low on almost everything. _'I really need to buy more food'_ I thought. Taking the meat, which was the only think I thought would be edible, I went back to the pup. Realising there was no way that he would be able to chew or swallow this tough meat; I bit off a piece and chewed it until it was soft. I took it out my mouth and got the pup to eat it.

This went on the rest of the night; I got the pup to eat and drink as much as I could, and I changed his bandages a couple of times. The bleeding had slowed to almost nothing, which I was really happy about. I found I couldn't get to sleep; I was afraid that something might happen if I dozed off. By morning the water I had in the house was finished so after giving the pup a quick check over I grabbed the bucket and quickly left to get water from the lake. As I was dipping the bucket into the lake I felt someone's eyes on me, I jumped up, turned around and came face to face with the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. Her long blond hair blew gracefully in the wind, while the shear white of her dress seemed to gleam in the light. I dropped my bucket and fell over in surprise. She bent down so she was level with me again. "I've been watching you mortal" The deity before me spoke in a voice that seemed to float through the air.

All I could do was stare at the divine being with huge eyes and mouth agape. "My name is Aeris; I am the Goddess of the Elements. And you my dear have passed the test I lay before you. You are the first, I have tested dozens and all have failed." I was confused what test had I passed, and I asked this question, in a small voice. The goddess smiled at me, and asked. "Have you done nothing out of the ordinary as of late?" I thought carefully, and realised. "The wolf pup, I helped him." I said more to myself than anything else. Aeris nodded her head and looking up she gave a sharp whistle. I heard noises from my cabin and looked out to it; to my surprise the wolf cub walked out of the cabin. But as he neared he seemed to grow and change, by the time he reached us he was a large black wolf with strange green markings etched into his fur. He walked gracefully past me to stand beside Aeris. "This is Tsume he is a dear companion of mine. To reward your kindness I will grant you a great power."

With that she lifted her hand and placed it gently on my forehead, the next thing I knew I was surrounded by a bright silver light. I could smell water, I opened eyes and looked around, I was surrounded by water but for some reason I wasn't afraid of it. I felt like it belonged with me, in me around me, it was a part of me. All I could see, smell and feel was the water. Then I found myself once again back at the lake with Aeris and Tsume before me. "W..w..what was that?" I stuttered out. "I have given you power over the water element. But know that control over this power will not come naturally; you must train both your body and mind. The better you become with your control over this element and the stronger you become, the faster your body will heal. Take this power and use it wisely." In the blink of an eye both Goddess and wolf disappeared.

I must have sat out there by the lake in a daze for hours because when I awoke from my stupor it was close to mid-day. _'What a strange dream' _I thought. I grabbed my bucket and filled it up, then took a casual stroll back to my cabin. When I got in I dropped the bucket full of water on the floor allowing it to spill everywhere. But that didn't both me, what did was that I saw the blood stained bandages around and the blankets near the fire. It was all real I realised, and then what she said must have been true I thought. I walked clear of the water on the floor and stared at it taking in every aspect of the water, the way it looked and the way it smelled. I stretched out my hand and pictured the water rising from the ground and forming an orb in the air. Slowly and shakily the water rose and gathered together in a wonky sort of orb. Slowly I moved the orb with my thoughts until it was positioned above the bucket, then I let it drift down until it was safely in the bucket.

**Selena's POV**

"And that is how we received our ability to control water the way we do. It is a powerful and beautiful gift that should not be abused. Once you have strengthened your body I will teach you how to use the Kekkei-Genkai of the Hirugawa clan." By this time Kitana had finished her warm up and was looking at me with wide eyes. "A goddess gave us our power?" She asked in wonder. I nodded with a small smile of understanding on my lips. When I had first heard this story when I was a child I had been completely captivated by it. I knew right away that I had to work hard to uphold the Hirugawa name and everything it stood for.

Unfortunately no matter how hard I worked I was not destined to be a powerful member of our clan. In fact in its history I was considered one of the weakest members of the clan. My control of the water element was mediocre and the fast healing other clan members have had the pleasure of experiencing was almost non-existent in me. Not to mention I was also the first member of the clan to get sick since the goddess gave us her gift. It wouldn't have been that bad when I was younger except that my mother was the head of the clan. As such it was my duty to take over that responsibility when I was older.

To avoid any problems my weakness may cause in clan, such as a battle for leadership, my mother took me and left the Land of Water. Then for the first time in our history she married a man. Hirugawa were always known to be single mothers who only had daughters. Another reason I am so strange, I had a son, the first in Hirugawa history. I grew up in Konoha and married Yodaime before my mother passed away leaving me as the head of our clan. Not that I have seen any other clan members since I was about six. The only proof of my leadership status is a sword made by the famous sword master Ketane. This sword will be passed to Kitana once I fade from this existence. I was brought out of my thoughts when Kitana asked me a question. "Has anyone seen Aeris again?" I shook my head gently as I replied, "No Leana was the first and last Hirugawa to come in contact with the Goddess. But that's enough of that its time to get to work. Let's start with target practice."

Years past and by the time Kitana was five I had no choice but to start taking her out on missions with me. I was too slow and weak to complete the higher level missions by myself and Kitana was easily genin level already. Our first few missions together were completed without any difficulty for either of us. But things can't always be that simple.

It was late at night; we were in a small village near the border of the Land of Water. There really was nothing special about this town except that in one of the small houses lining the few streets a special scroll was hidden. "Remember keep low, go fast and don't make a sound." I whispered to my daughter as we both stood on a tree branch near the village. "Got it." She replied simply. I looked over at her a final time. Her hair and face were hidden by a black mask. Her clothing was all black, hiding as much of her pale skin as possible. I was dressed the same in preparation for this mission. "Go." I whispered as I jumped out of the tree I was in immediately blending into the shadows to search the first house.

I was not given a lot of information for this mission. Only that the scroll would have a blue covering and sealed with the Kanji for water. Right now Kitana was searching one side of the village while I searched the other. It was a simple retrieval mission but I didn't like that we were basically going in blind. I used a simple jutsu to open a window in the first house before I snuck in and did a quick search, making sure to be as quite as possible. If the houses' owners woke up the whole village would be awake in moments. I wasn't about to kill off a couple of civilians just for a scroll, I wasn't an official shinobi anymore anyway.

I found nothing in the first house so I moved onto the second one; it wasn't until the fourth house that I found something. I snuck through the window finding myself in a small but tidy study. I searched through the shelves and draws not really expecting to find anything, so I was a little surprised when I came upon a small safe hidden under the desk. I closed my eyes and ran my hand along the safe. A smirk touched my lips when I felt a small spark of chakra from within the safe.

I concentrated for a moment as I spread my hand out in front of myself. Water swirled out of thin air collecting in my hand. A had to focus but I bent the water to my will shaping it into a small butterfly. With a thought I sent it out the window to let Kitana know that I had found the scroll, she would leave for the meeting spot as soon as she saw the small water creature. There was no need for her to keep searching and possibly risk the mission if I already had the scroll. I crouched down by the safe again. Adding a tiny bit of chakra to my ears I began to spin the dial of the safe waiting for the click to show that I had reached the right number.

It only took me a minute to crack the safe which opened without so much as a sound. The only thing inside it was the scroll we had been searching for. I picked it up and put it in my kunai holster for safe keeping. Closing the safe up again I stood up and made to leave the house through the window again. A sudden creak on the wood floor behind me made me turn around quickly, my arm raised in defense. I just barely managed to block a metal pipe that had been swung at my head.

I screamed out in pain as I felt the bone of my forearm snap. Jumping back I looked at my assailant. It was dark so I could only make out rough details about him. He was tall and bulky, from the power behind the hit I knew that that bulk was muscle. His age could have been anything from between thirty to forty. "Just give back my scroll and I will let you go." The man said casually, like he was used to being obeyed. "Sorry not going to happen." I replied as I made a dash to the window. He was in front of me before I could take more than a couple of steps. No one but a shinobi was that fast.

I knew there was no easy escape for me here, so I brought myself into my fighting stance. My right arm hung limply at my side making it pretty much useless. "Fine if you won't give it back I'll just have to take it back." He said with venom in his voice. I felt the air rush out of my lungs as he suddenly appeared in front of me and slammed his fist into my stomach. "So weak." I heard him mutter sounding almost disappointed. I gripped his arm firmly then pushing off of it I flipped over his body. I turned around quickly punching him in the kidneys he bent of in pain giving me the perfect opportunity. I kicked out hitting him in the butt solidly sending him careening forward. His head hit the wall with a loud bang making him drop to the floor unconscious.

"Idiot." I said with a smirk. Turning around my body suddenly froze. A second guy I hadn't sensed at all was there his arm already in motion. In his hand was a knife headed straight for my heart. I didn't have time to block, to move or even breathe. This was it; I wasn't making it out of here alive. The man stopped in his tracks his face frozen in an expression of surprise. Slowly blood started to ooze from his mouth dripping down his chin onto the floor. As he dropped to the ground I caught sight of Kitana crouching in the window her arm still extended from when she had thrown the kunai that pierced the man in his throat. I saw the horror in her eyes as she realized that she had just killed a man, but I couldn't help her with it right now. We had to get out of here and quickly before anyone decided to appear, especially after my overly loud scream.

"Move." I said sharply snapping her out of her daze. She quickly jumped backwards leaving me room to escape. I followed and ran off to the forest without even looking at her. "Mommy, I...I didn't mea.." Kitana started as we ran. "Not now." I interrupted firmly. My heart reached out to her, I knew that she was suffering. That was the first person she had ever killed. But we had to get as far away from that village as possible before anyone discovered the body or the guy I knocked out woke up. Until we were home she would have to deal with it herself.

We made it to Kirigakure about an hour before the sun was due to rise. I told Kitana to wait hidden in the forest while I collected our payment. My arm was killing me and I was exhausted, but the sooner we finished this mission completely the sooner we could try and recuperate. I got my payment from the evening clerk and left quickly. It was another three hours before we finally made it back to our home. Kitana hadn't said a word since her weak attempt to explain what she had done.

As our feet hit the ground in the clearing I turned to her and without a word wrapped my good arm around her bringing her close. For a moment she was tense but it didn't take long for the tears to come. I brought her down to the ground with me as her body shook while she sobbed. There was nothing I could say; everyone handled their first kill differently. I closed my eyes when I sudden realization hit me. Kitana was now a true shinobi, her hands will remain tainted by blood until the end of her days. Such is the life of the shinobi...


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters involved with the anime or manga. I do however own Kitana and any characters I create for the purpose of my story.

**Chapter 03**

Kitana's POV

I tensed my legs an instant before I jumped landing lightly on the side of the tree I had been aiming for. My muscles ached and I was covered in sweat but I still forced my body to hold steady as I used my chakra to stick firmly against the side of the tree. Without skipping a beat I moved into a series of rapid kicks and punches, pushing myself harder and harder. I was six years old now and had been going on missions with my mom for about a year. But I was still too weak, still too slow. It's my fault that my mom got hurt on our last joint mission, which was about a month ago. I hesitated for a moment and in that instant the target managed to finish his jutsu. The sound of my mom's scream of pain still rang clearly in my ears.

My legs started to shake letting me know that they wouldn't hold out much longer. I pushed off with my legs, and then doing a gentle back flip, I landed softly on the ground in a crouch. My breathing was coming in short rough gasps. I forced my tired body to stand while I took a few slow, deep breaths to try and control my breathing. Every time we went on missions my mom tried to protect me, often taking hits meant for me. Granted I've had my fair share of injuries but she was always there to save me if things get to bad. I'm tired of it; I don't want her getting hurt anymore because of me. I want to be stronger.

I walked unsteadily back to the cabin, knowing that I had possibly pushed myself a little harder than I should have. Entering the cabin I went straight to the bathroom, I needed to relax in a nice warm bath. Just as I reached the bathroom door my mom walked out of her room. "Kitana, I don't want you pushing yourself this hard every day. You are going to damage your body." She said softy as she looked at me in concern. Facing her I leaned against the doorway for support. "I'm ok, really." I replied knowing that I wasn't telling the truth. She narrowed her eyes; she always knew when I was lying.

"Don't try to fool a medical nin. If you knew the damage you were doing to yourself." She stopped with a thoughtful look on her face. After a moment she seemed to come to a decision. "For the next two months I don't want you doing any taijutsu or training on your Kekkei-Genkai." She said firmly. "Mom you can't be serious, I have to train." I replied quickly not believing that she would try and stop me from doing the one thing I loved. She shook her head as she continued, "Sorry dear but I have something else I want you to work on. It's going to take a lot of patience, chakra and control. If you are doing other training it will just interfere." "What exactly are you going to teach me?" I asked despite myself. "Medical jutsu. Teaching someone as young as you medical jutsu is normally pointless because precise chakra control is needed. But I think you might be able to handle it."

I looked at her sceptically. I didn't know any other people my age so I couldn't compare myself to them. But I knew what medical jutsu entailed; working on the cellular level using chakra was a lot more complex than using it to perform normal jutsu's. I had been working on my chakra control by walking up trees and on water but the level she wanted me to attempt was far above that. "Are you sure mom? I don't think I'm ready for something like that." I replied insecurely. She smiled at me warmly making me feel a bit more confident. "Kitana you can do anything you put your mind too." And with that she was gone. Now that she was not around anymore I suddenly felt my worn out body again.

I had to grip the door frame so that I didn't fall to the ground. "After your bath come into my room and I will help fix the damage you've done to yourself today." My mom said as she stuck her head out her doorway, giving me that accusing look she was so good at. "Thanks mom." I replied sheepishly before stumbling into the bathroom.

The next day I started my medical training and it was as hard as I expected. I had the ability to memorise anything I saw. So if I saw a jutsu performed once I could copy the seals but manipulating the chakra in the correct manner, that was a whole other problem. First I had to work on plants, trying to bring life back into them. It took me more than two week to get that right. Then insects which took me a further week. My mom made me progress through many different levels. Each with their own challenges. Apparently my chakra reserves are a lot larger than my mom expected, which meant I could practice longer than she hoped.

At the end of the two month ban on my normal training I could heal light wounds on a person without destroying any cells. It was a skill I would have to practice often but eventually I might get to a level where it will actually be useful.

I sat on the shore of the lake staring at the water. Slowly an orb of water rose from the lake's surface, gliding out so smoothly that the water's surface didn't even ripple. From beside that another orb rose and then another. The three water orbs hovered above the water's surface glittering in the evening light. In the beginning, when I had first started to learn to use my Kekkei-Genkai, I had to move parts of my body to get even one orb of water to move. But now after two years of practice it only took a thought to get such a small body of water to bend the way I wanted it too. The orbs began to spin rapidly, going so fast that they were a blur. Something this simple was too easy to be called training for me anymore. It was just a way to pass the time.

"Having fun." My mom asked as she came and sat beside me. "You could say that." I glanced over at her wondering if now was a good time to bring up a question I had had for a while. She seemed relaxed and calm maybe she wouldn't mind me asking. "Mom, what happened to dad?" I asked cautiously. She tensed instantly a look of surprise flashed across her face. "I mean... it's just that ... well you read in books that kids have a mom and a dad and you haven't ever said anything about dad so I was just wondering." I finished softly already regretting bringing it up.

"I suppose you were going to ask eventually, I just didn't expect you to ask so soon." She started sounding a little sad. "Your father died the day you were born. He was a great man who led a powerful shinobi village, but he faced an opponent who was just too strong. He saved a lot of people by sacrificing himself." I stared up at my mom in wonder. I had thought that the reason she hadn't spoken about him before was because he was someone not worth mentioning. "Why haven't you spoken about him before?" I asked a little upset that she would keep something like this from me. "You're fathers passing was hard on me, even now it still hurts to even think about him. But I guess it is about time that I tell you about the man I fell in love with."

With that she began to tell me the story of her life and meeting the man I never got the chance to call dad. They met when they were in the shinobi academy, both young and innocent. My father advanced quickly through the classes leaving my mom behind. When they were both in their early twenties they met up again, at this stage my father was a jounin while my mom was a chunnin. He was training a group of genin Rin, Obito and Kakashi. Over time they fell in love and got married a few years later. On the day I was born my father battled a powerful foe, he gave his life to save the people he held closest. I listened in awe as my mom brought my dad to life in her story, I was finally able to understand what a great man he was and I wished more than anything that I could have met him.

"He sounds amazing." I said softly when my mom stopped talking. She nodded mutely. "I wonder what it would have been like growing up with you, me and dad together." I mused aloud. She seemed to tense again at my words. "Kitana there is something I have kept from you." She started her voice unsure. I waited for a while but she didn't continue, it looked like she didn't actually want to tell me what she was hiding. "Mom what is it?" I asked carefully. Her shoulders sagged as a resolved look fixed itself on her face.

"You have a brother." She said this so quickly I almost didn't catch it, almost being the operative word. "What!" I yelled as I jumped up in surprise. "You have a brother, well a twin really." She said this time a little slower. "Is he still alive?" I asked eagerly. "I don't know, I left him behind when I left the village." She replied, her voice seemed distant and pain filled. "You left him behind, mom how could you?" I asked in shock. "You would have had to be there to understand. But I'm telling you now and when you are older if you want to find him I will let you."

"Why can't we go back and get him today?" "I'm a missing nin, if they caught sight of me I would be arrested leaving both you and Naruto alone." "Naruto... so that's his name. I promise you that one day I will find him and bring him here so that you can meet him. I don't know why you left him behind; actually I don't want to know. I... I just need some time to think." I looked at her my eyes still seeing my mother, but my mind told me that she was someone who was capable of leaving a baby all alone in a village while running away from her life.

I walked off leaving her sitting at the side of the lake. I still loved my mother but right now I didn't want to be around her. I stopped for a moment when I realised I hadn't found out what village Naruto was in. Shaking my head I continued to walk, I would ask her when I had calmed down a little. I collected my training gear, which had grown dusty since its last use. I changed my sandals for the weighted ones I was once familiar with, as well as slipping on a pair of weighted arm guards. When I stood I noticed the change immediately, I had a lot of catching up to do.

It was a year later that my life changed. My mom's health seemed to be failing, I practiced my medical skills often trying to get them to a level where I could help her but she was too far gone. We both knew she was dying but I couldn't, no I wouldn't give up on her. "How are you feeling today?" I asked my mom as I walked into her room with a bowl of soup on a tray. "Much better." She said in a voice so soft I had to strain to hear her. We both knew it was a lie but it had become a sort of routine for us. "I made you some lunch." I continued as I placed the tray on her side table. "Thank you dear, you shouldn't have though, I would have made myself something later." She replied a soft smile on her face.

"It's ok; I was making myself something anyway." I gave her a last look before I started to leave. "I'm going to go do some training." I said as I walked out of her room with a heavy heart. I hated seeing her like that. She wasn't meant to be lying in bed unable to move properly. She was supposed to be training with me, going on missions and forcing me to control my need to train excessively. Now she could barely stay awake for more than a few hours a day.

Since finishing my two month medical training course, I hadn't been able to train as much as I would have liked. Although I could heal larger wounds on people now thanks to my need to improve this skill. But physically I was behind where I should have been. I walked out onto the water and stood there for a moment just enjoying the feeling of being near so much water. I closed my eyes and concentrated, the water below me shifted slightly as I focused on it. Raising my right hand slowly made at least a hundred water orbs rise from the water's surface. I focused to make sure that the surface stayed perfectly still.

When the orbs were clear I lifted my left hand and began to rotate my wrist. Slowly the orbs began to rotate on their axis. With my right hand I spread my fingers wide, the orbs suddenly shot off in different directions. My body tense and my eyes narrowed as I forced myself to concentrate on each of the orbs. Making them move between the others without touching one another. Their movements were quick and erratic, I felt sweat appear on my skin as my mind was pushed to its limits. A sudden explosion of water had me cursing mentally, two water orbs had collided. For the next ten minutes I tried to maintain the fast paced training session without destroying any more orbs. Unfortunately two more sets of orbs collided before I had to drop the orbs back into the water.

I stood on the water panting. Our Kekkei-Genkai didn't require any chakra to work but it put a lot of mental strain on a person as well as draining their energy. This is why taijutsu is so important for our clan as well as meditation and constant practice. Without it improving our Kekkei-Genkai would be impossible. I was already at the level where my body's natural healing was improving. On a mission not too long ago I got hit by a kunai, it sliced past my arm leaving a gash behind. It was only hours later that the wound healed completely without the help of medical jutsu. It may have only been a light wound but still, it healing that quickly was amazing.

I walked off of the water trying to steady my breath as I went. The moment my foot hit solid ground I started to move faster, pacing myself at a light jog. For the next hour I jogged around the lake, forcing myself to go faster and faster the further I went. After that was shadow sparring, then weapons training. This included katana training now. I needed to know how to use a katana because it was a symbol of our clan. The clan leader was expected to be a good swordswoman and unfortunately with the way things were looking for my mom my turn as clan leader was not that far off. At the end of my training I found myself back in the lake, this time floating in the water, enjoying the cool waters' affect on my tired body.

I allowed my mind to drift, for a while I didn't think about my training, my mom, anything. Instead I focused on the sound of the water around me and the feeling of the setting sun touching my skin. This was what I lived for, this was my paradise. After a while I dropped back into the water and swam leisurely back to shore. Getting out I swept my hand casually in front of my body once. As if by magic my water soaked clothing and hair dried instantly. This was a useful way of utilising my Kekkei-Genkai, I discovered it about three months ago. Stretching my arms above my head I finally felt ready to go back inside where I would have to face my mother's pain filled form.

The moment I stepped into the house I knew something was wrong. I could hear my mother's breathing; it was coming in short harsh gasps. "Mom!" I shouted out in surprise as I dashed into her room, flinging the door open so harshly that it split when it hit the wall. I was at her side in an instant, without even having to think about it my hands were already flying through the seals for a medical jutsu. My hands glowed a light green as I placed them over the pale form of my mom. Closing my eyes in concentration I allowed my chakra to spread through her body assessing the damage. I pulled back sharply when I was finished.

My body was numb while my mind kept going over the same thing again and again. How did it get this bad this quickly? I checked her a few days ago and she was only a little worse than the time I checked her before that. Right now her organs were shutting down, everything was failing. I didn't know enough medical jutsu to stop this. I couldn't help... As that thought sunk in I dropped to the floor. My mom was dying right in front of my eyes and I couldn't do anything except prolong the painful dying process. "Mom..." I whispered. My eyes couldn't focus on anything I couldn't feel anything. Why wasn't I stronger, why couldn't I help her?

I jumped when I felt my mom's hand land on my shoulder. I looked up and found her looking at me. I could see the pain in her eyes while she tried to hide any signs of it on her face. "Kitana, promise me you'll find your brother." This one sentence seemed to drain most of the energy from her. "Mom don't speak, you need to conserve your strength." I said quickly as I jumped up and held her hand. "Promise." She said as loudly as she could, pain flashed across her face as she said it. "I promise, I promise. Please just hold on." I replied quickly as panic entered my mind. "Tell him... tell him... I'm sorry." It came out as a whisper. My breath caught in my throat as I felt her hand go limp in my own. "Mom...mom....MOM!" I yelled out not wanting to accept what I knew was true. Sinking to the floor once again I rested my head against the side of her bed, afraid to let her hand go. Everything was silent not even the bird sang in the trees, it was if they too mourned her passing.

What happened after that was pretty much a blur to me. Somehow I managed to bury her beside her favourite tree and even though I felt broken I managed to survive a week without truly falling too pieces. Whenever I thought of her a sharp pain would pierce my chest, not unlike being stabbed repeatedly. Eventually I came to a decision. I couldn't wait around here any longer, I had to leave and find my brother to pass on my mom's dying words. With that in mind I packed a backpack and grabbed a map.

Walking outside I took the map and attached it to a tree. I took a few steps back and closed my eyes. Then reaching into my kunai holster I grabbed a kunai and flung it in the direction of the tree. I heard the thud of the kunai hitting the tree as I opened my eyes. "The Land of Wind. Which means I'm off to Sunagakure." I said aloud to myself whilst I stared at where the kunai had landed. It was as good a place as any to start looking for Naruto. I just wished that I had gotten around to asking my mom which village she had left him in. Now I had to jump from place to place to try and find him. At least I knew he was in a shinobi village.

I went back into the house and just stood in the doorway for a minute. There was one more thing I had to grab before I left and I knew that when I took it, it would mean that my mom was really gone. I know as a shinobi I should not have emotions and should be able to deal with her death easily. But I guess I'm just not that good of a shinobi yet. I took a deep breath before stepping through the doorway and heading off into my mother's room.

I walked straight up to a small cupboard near the end of her bed and opened it. My eyes widened when I saw the sword that lay there in. It was a katana, the preferred blade of the samurai. But this one was different, the hilt was black with fine threads of red through it without a guard, while the blade was a solid black. The scabbard was an old black case with intricate silver designs on it. It really was the most beautiful sword I had ever seen. And now that my mom had passed on this katana was mine, but with it came responsibility. I was now the head of the Hirugawa family, and although I had not seen any of my relatives before, I had a responsibility to them should we ever meet up.

I grabbed the katana and put it into its scabbard, then attached it too my back since it was too long to hang at my side. As I walked out of the house I grabbed my back pack in passing and put it on over my sword. For the last time, in who knows how long, I looked back at my home wishing that it could have stayed my home for a little while longer. Pulling my eyes away from the cabin I forced myself to take the first of many steps into the world outside my haven.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters involved with the anime or manga. I do however own Kitana and any characters I create for the purpose of my story.

**Authors Notes**

_As some of you may have noticed I have changed names and places even times in my story when compared to the original series. That's because I started to write this story, the first time round, well before the Shippuuden series started. I didn't feel the need to change anything, even though it is now inaccurate, because this is a fanfiction and as such is subject to my whims. Hopefully you still enjoy the story despite the mistakes._

**Chapter 04**

Kitana's POV

I moved swiftly through the tall trees, the shadows cast by the leaves kept me hidden from any casual observers. Even at the rapid pace I was moving at it would take me at least five days to get to Sunagakure. I wasn't all that used to travelling this far from the Land of Water. My mother had tried to keep our missions as close to home as possible so that if anything should happen we would be able to get back to the cabin, and the safety it held.

My first night out in the wilderness was not as bad as I would have thought. I set minor traps around my camp and built a small fire to ward off any nearby animals. A bed of moss and leaves served as a place to rest my head for the night. I woke up bright and early the next morning and, after cleaning my camp up, set off for Sunagakure once more.

I had hoped that I would have an uneventful trip but it seemed that was not to be the case. Near the end of the morning I felt a couple of weak chakra signals. Normally these would have gone unnoticed by me but being so far away from the safety of Aeris had me on edge. I didn't want to risk drawing attention to myself so I dropped to the forest floor and began to walk at an average civilians pace. I pushed my chakra as far down as I could get it and hoped that they would not notice me.

I forced my tense body to relax as the chakra signals got closer. I knew there was more than one person but I couldn't tell just how many. Needless to say I trained more with my offensive skills than my tracking and monitoring skills. My face slipped into as care free an expression as I could muster at this stage while I continued to walk.

I heard the slight whoosh of air above me that indicated something moving rapidly had just passed. My heart started pounding in my chest when I realised that they were waiting in the trees just ahead of my position. For a moment I considered veering off in another direction but I realised that that would look rather suspicious. If these shinobi were planning anything sinister I would need the element of surprise on my side to even stand a chance against them.

I didn't have to walk much further before thuds were heard as three shinobi dropped from the trees to surround me. "Hey there little girl, what are you doing out in the middle of nowhere all by yourself?" Asked one of the people, he was fairly short with long black hair. He wore a long red cloak that was slightly tattered, under that he had a shin length grey jacket. His knee high boots were planted firmly on the ground signifying the fact that he was not going anywhere. On his back was a long sword in a simple black sheath that had a silver tip.

The other two men laughed at the first mans question as if it were a joke. I kept quite as I went through everything my mother had taught me about fighting multiple opponents. "You know it's not safe out here by yourself?" said another of the trio. He had short black hair; he also looked like the oldest of the group. He wore a mid-shin length black coat that had metal shoulder plates on. His belt held his shiruken holster and strapped to his back was another long sword. The last man said nothing as he smirked evilly at me. He was bald and wore a silver breast plate with a white knee length loin cloth. Under that he wore blood red pants tucked into his knee high boots. It seemed his weapon of choice was a spear type blade sharpened finely on both ends.

"I'm not alone, my daddy is close by so you had better leave me alone before he comes." I said in a small voice while I cowered in front of them. I had a plan in my mind, granted it wasn't a very good plan but I hoped they would underestimate me because of my age. The first man chuckled loudly then said. "Do you really think we would fall for that, we're shinobi there is no use trying to fool us." As he said this he indicated his forehead protector. I noticed that they were from Kirigakure, this made my blood boil a little. My mother and I had done so many missions for that village and now I was getting harassed by a few of their shinobi. Somehow it just didn't seem fair to me.

"Now why don't we have some fun?" He continued, that sent the other two into laughing fits again while he smirked widely. I didn't have to force a frightened look onto my face because I really was frightened. There were three of them and only one of me. Not to mention the fact that they were probably faster and stronger then me. My plan had better work or I was certain I would be in serious trouble.

"Please don't hurt me." I pleaded as tears sprang to my eyes while I backed up slowly. "Hurt you? Why the thought never crossed my mind. Then again this may not be as enjoyable for you as it is for us." The one I had now come to the conclusion was the leader said as a dark smile touched his lips.

I was shaking slightly but I knew what I had to do. As I had been edging backwards the three men had followed me until my back was firmly against a tree and they were grouped together in front of me. "Please just leave me alone." I pleaded one last time. They just laughed as they moved in close enough to grab me. They didn't get a chance to grab me though. "Then you leave me no choice." I muttered. While I had been backing up I had been gathering moister from the air and ground around us so that I could easily use its power. My head snapped up as I glared at them, they froze in surprise for a moment.

I quickly shoved my hands out in front of me and to their surprise they were sent tumbling by a jet of water. But I wasn't done yet. While they were getting up I used the time to gather as much water out of the air as possible for a stronger attack. "You little brat, you're going to pay for that." The short one growled. I knew my time was up, there wasn't enough water to do any real damage so I added some of my chakra to the mix hoping that it would do.

A large swirling mass of water barreled down on the three surprised shinobi. It was going faster than I ever remember being able to send water. Before they could so much as blink the water hit them solidly. I cringed as the sound of breaking trees rose above the whooshing water. Keeping control of such a large mass of water was tiring so it didn't take me long to drop my control of it in a bid to save some energy.

I looked at the damage my attack had done and couldn't help but be surprised. In truth I had never attempted to mix my chakra into any of the attacks I created with my Kekkei-Genkai. The results though proved that it could be a powerful tool in future. The only problem was that I had added more chakra than I had originally intended because of my uncertainty in its ability to work. So now I was a little drained both with my energy and chakra.

I shook myself out of my shocked state and instead focused on finding out what had happened too the three shinobi. I followed the path of destruction left in the wake of my attack. There were so many trees and plants that were up rooted and snapped in half. As a Hirugawa I have a close relationship with nature and seeing the damage I caused to it upset me.

A sudden flare of chakra surprised me enough that I lost my footing and fell forward, off the fallen tree I had been standing on, landing on the muddy ground just behind the tree. I jumped slightly when four thuds were heard as shuriken embedded themselves into the tree behind the one I had just fallen off. I thanked what ever gods were out there that I had fallen or I would probably have been dead right now.

"There's no use hiding little girl, I know exactly where you are. I don't know how someone so young could have managed to learn such a strong water jutsu, but I guarantee that when I catch you, you will tell me." I heard a man snarl out viciously. It sounded like the group leader but I wouldn't be sure until I saw him. I sent my chakra out carefully as I tried to pinpoint my attackers.

Frowning slightly I concentrated harder after only feeling one chakra signal. After a moment more focusing I was able to pick up the weak chakra signals of the others… but they were fading fast. They were both either dead or dying which meant there was only one guy left for me to deal with.

The only problem was that I was now drained of chakra which meant I would have to rely on my taijutsu and Kekkei-Genkai to get through this. "Come out now before I have to force you!" The shinobi shouted out making me jump in surprise. My mouth was dry and my hands felt slick with sweat, I was scared, even though I had been in situations like this before. Maybe it was because I knew that there was no one out there who would come to my rescue, no one who even knew I existed. Was this the realization that if I died now it would almost be as if I never existed?

I frowned at the thought then pushed it aside, I would analyze this particular thought when I wasn't fighting for my life. I slid my backpack off my shoulders carefully, knowing that I would need to be able to move as freely as possible if I wanted to win this fight. Drawing in a deep breath I waited for a moment before shouting back, "Why are you hiding? Are you afraid to fight a seven year old?" I questioned back mockingly. I didn't have to wait long for a reply, which came in the form of his anger fueled body charging at me across the fallen trees. "Yikes" I yelped out as I barely avoided being impaled by one of the kunai he sent my way as he ran toward me.

The sudden attack was unexpected, I was hoping for a verbal retort from him to buy myself sometime to plan but it seemed his nerves were as frayed as my own. He was bigger than me, so his reach was far longer. I had no doubt he would be able to avoid any kunai sent his way so I did the only thing I could… I pulled my katana out of its scabbard. At the sight of my katana his steps seemed to falter slightly before he stopped well out of reach of my katana and took a defensive stance.

"Where did you get that katana?" He questioned through gritted teeth. I could tell he didn't want to ask the question, he wanted to kill me, his murderous intent was shinning clearly in his eyes. "It was my mothers." I replied quickly while widening my stance to prepare for my own attack.

"Was your mother's name Kitana?" I looked at him strangely wondering what he knew about my family. "No Kitana was my grandmother." He was having some sort of internal battle that was showing on his strained face. "So that wasn't a jutsu back there." He stated to himself. I narrowed my eyes, who was this guy that knew so much about my family and my Kekkei-Genkai?

"I want that katana." He said simply as he seemed to come to a decision in his mind. "No." was my reply. "How do you know about my grandmother and my Kekkei-Genkai?" I asked quickly hoping that this unofficial truce would last long enough for me to get some information out of him.

"I met a girl from the Hirugawa clan once, she told me a lot of things about you people. Things like that sword shows that you're the clan leader… unless your mother is around somewhere?" He was waiting for an answer I wouldn't give. "I'll take that as a no. She also happened to mention the fact that the Hirugawa elder's council is offering a huge reward to the person who brings back that sword. With or without the clan leader attached to it. His lips quirked up at his statement giving him a sadistic look.

It took me a moment to register the information he had supplied me with. The clan was now being run by a group of elders who put a reward on the katana, who it seemed didn't care if the clan leader got killed during the retrieval process. There was no way that was true though, right?

I didn't have time to think about it any further as the shinobi suddenly jumped forward while slashing down with his kunai. My instincts saved me as my arms snapped up, barely bringing my katana up in time to block the smaller weapon.

He was strong, a lot stronger than me. He pushed down heavily on my katana using his extra height and weight to his advantage. I could feel my arms starting to buckle under the pressure. Yes I was strong for my age but this guy was at least chunnin level and had way more experience than me. It was purely luck and their underestimation of me that made it possible for me to kill the other two.

I concentrated for an instant, gathering a small amount of water from the air and sending it straight into his eyes. He grunted in surprise and pulled back slightly, but it was enough. I pulled away from his kunai quickly. He teetered forward at the sudden loss of the point he was putting pressure on. He still wasn't low enough for me to get at his throat so I hopped up and slashed out with my katana.

He saw it coming and tried to duck down under it but couldn't quite make it. I felt my katana slash into his skin drawing blood as it streaked across his forehead. "You little bitch." He spat out venomously as the blood ran in a steady stream into his right eye. "You're going to pay for that." He threw his kunai straight at me. I wasn't prepared for it and couldn't move in time. I screamed out in pain as the kunai lodged in my shoulder. The pain sent me to my knees for an instant before I forced myself back up again ready to defend myself.

I wanted to take the kunai out but the blood loss that could occur while I fought forced me to dismiss the idea. The shinobi seemed consumed with rage as he charged at me with a kunai in each hand. He slashed at me repeatedly, far faster than I could defend against. I soon found my clothing blood soaked as more and more of his attacks got past my defenses.

My arms felt heavy and my katana was almost impossible to hold onto let alone block with. I continued to back up trying to escape his frenzied attack but he followed me step for step. One particularly strong hit sent my katana flying from my hands. "Now this ends." His voice sounded excited and happy, like ending my life was some sort of game to him.

He raised both his arms above his head ready to drive both kunai into me. I didn't have any weapons on left, my chakra was wiped out and I needed more time if I was going to use my Kekkei-Genkai. I couldn't even last a week outside of Aeris protective shelter. A glint in the corner of my eye caught my attention. In that instant I knew I only had one shot left.

Faster than I thought I was capable of moving, I pulled the kunai embedded in my shoulder out and thrust it up using both my arms. I felt it enter flesh but I was too afraid to look in case I saw the two kunai still headed at me with the shinobi only sporting a minor wound. The sound of metal hitting earth was the first sign I had that something was different. When nothing else happened, after a couple of seconds, I forced my eyes up.

Surprise ran through me when I saw that I had managed to shove the kunai up under his chin and into his brain. His arms had dropped to his sides, the kunai he had been holding lay useless on the floor. I pulled my hands away from the kunai and stepped back quickly. He was just standing there... his eyes glazed over.

I felt a breeze drift by lazily, as if it were a signal of some sort the shinobi fell to his knees then dropped face forward into the muddied ground in front of him. I stood there in shock, my hands shaking from more than just the adrenaline from the fight. One instant was all it took, one instant of overconfidence on his part, one instant of luck for me and somehow that was all I needed to survive.

I dropped to the floor trying to get my hands to stop shaking. That was close, far too close for comfort. My eyes trailed along my arms which had taken the brunt of the damage from his rage powered attacks. Cuts both deep and shallow lined both of them. They burned but the throbbing from my shoulder over powered any pain in my arms. I could feel the warm blood running down my shirt soaking the area around the hole in my shoulder where the kunai once was.

Forcing myself to my feet I groaned as I noticed that my legs were also laced with cuts. The adrenaline pumping though my body was preventing me from feeling most of the pain, but I knew that wouldn't last much longer. I needed to get my wounds cleaned up and I needed to burn what was left of the clothes I was wearing.

I stumbled forward trying to control my increasingly sore body. Snatching both my back pack and katana from the ground I closed my eyes and let my Kekkei-Genkai senses drift out. It only took a few seconds for me to locate what I was looking for. There was a pond with a small stream running into it not too far from here. It would be the perfect place for me to work on my wounds.

Gritting my teeth against the pain I made myself dash off into a nice easy run. With every footfall the pain in my shoulder intensified. I barely noticed my nails digging into the strap of my backpack, which I was forced to carry in my hand for fear or injuring my shoulder further.

Ten minutes of running was all it took before I saw the pond come into view. I almost cried at the sight of it. Dropping my bag and katana down at the edge of the pond I slipped my hand into the water. My Kekkei-Genkai let me know that the water was clean. So without further thought I dug in my back pack and pulled out one of my kunai. Using my left hand, since my right arm had become useless a while back, I cut away at my shirt.

There was no way I would be able to pull it off over my head with my arm the way it was at the moment. The fabric fell way easily as the kunai cut through it. I nicked myself a few time in the process, adding to the crisscrossed mess that was once my smooth skin. When my shirt fell away completely I somehow managed to wriggle out of my pants. Having stripped down to my underwear I waded into the water and slowly started to clean the blood from my skin.

If I had, had any chakra left I would have tried to heal some of my wounds myself. Doing that was not something an amateur such as me should be doing, but at this point I was almost willing to risk it. By the time I had washed off enough of the blood to actually see my wounds clearly the water around me had turned a faint pink colour. At this point everything hurt, even the areas where I wasn't cut up. I wanted to stay in the water where at least some of the pain seemed to be suppressed but I knew I had to tend to the wound on my shoulder. If it kept bleeding like it was, I wouldn't make it too tomorrow.

I went back to the shore and pulled my emergency medical kit from my backpack. It took some time but I managed to wrap up all of the cuts as well as my shoulder. I contemplated getting dressed in my spare clothing but discarded the idea immediately. I had a feeling that a few of my cuts might bleed through the wrapping, and since I only had one set of clothes left I didn't want to risk getting them blood stained.

I sighed as I lay there beside the pond letting the late afternoon sun dry my body. I didn't have the energy to bother with something like using my Kekke-Genkai to dry myself when the sun worked just as well. Turning my head to the side I stared at my sword. If what that shinobi said was true then who knew how many people were out there looking for my katana. I also had the distinct feeling that the elders may have also suggested that killing me, as the owner, would probably be well received.

What had happened to the Hirugawa clan while my family was separated from them? Or was it because my grandmother had left them to protect my mother that the elders were so intent on getting rid of us and taking over? Because I had to assume that was what they wanted, to have complete control over the clan. I knew that since Leana's time only the owner of the katana was considered the clan leader, and I didn't think that was going to change any time soon.

I knew that I would have to get rid of my katana for now, even though I didn't want too. What if's kept traveling through my mind. What if one of the other shinobi had survived my initial attack, what if they had been jounin, what if my instant of luck hadn't occurred. What if, what if, what if. I wasn't strong enough to wield the katana and defend it against people that wanted to take it from me. I would have to get rid of it for now. But when I was stronger I would come back for it, then I would find the rest of the Hirugawa clan and find out what was really going on.

But where to hide it? I looked at the pond and shrugged mentally, here was as good a place as any. Pushing myself up with my left arm, I grabbed the katana and walked over to the pond. Kneeling at the water's edge I pushed the katana into the pond. Closing my eyes I let my Kekkei-Genkai loose, it seeped into the water allowing me to sense it until, in my mind's eye, it became the living being I knew it was.

It pulsed with life and energy on a level normal humans couldn't imagine. I drifted within the energy for a time, just enjoying being surrounded by this life giving power, before I brought myself back to the task at hand. I nudged the energy with my mind, sending a simple plea to hide the sword for me.

The water was not a cognitive being, it simply was. My words were nothing to the energy but what I wanted was clear. I felt the sword disappear from my hand as it turned into water, joining the energy pulsing around me. I could only just tell it was there, if anyone but a Hirugawa came looking for this sword there was no way they would be able to find it. Even if a Hirugawa came here the only way they would be able to find it, is if they knew it was here.

I pulled my Kekkei-Genkai back allowing my mind to drift way from the energy that was the water. As I pulled my hand out of the water and opened my eyes I suddenly dropped back on the ground. My limbs were shaking in exhausting and my mind was cloudy. What I had just done had taken the remainder of my energy but it was something that needed to be done.

I felt my eyes close for an instant but I forced them back open. I couldn't just lay here wearing only my underwear. I wasn't at Leana's cabin anymore and I knew that there was a chance someone would find me while I was asleep. With that thought in mind I tried to make a conscious effort to get up but it was to no avail. My eyes closed again and this time I couldn't force them open.


End file.
